Gujarat AAR in the case of M/s. Jain Dairy Products Pvt. Ltd.

Case Covered:

M/s. Jain Dairy Products Pvt. Ltd.

Facts of the Case:

The applicant is doing business of manufacturing and selling of products of paneer, cheese and other milk products and also trading of other food items. They are registered under the GST Act, 2017.

At present, they are selling Paneer packed in unit container i.e. vacuum pouch (with Brand Name) and also in loose form/in plastic bags without sealing of packet/in loose carry bags and bearing details like name of manufacturer or branches or others as required by the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006(FSSAI) or other relevant Acts, to consumers.

In view of the above backdrops, the applicant raised Question, as below:

Whether the benefit of exemption of GST at 0% is applicable for the invoices raised to the end-use users in case of selling of paneer in loose form without sealing of packet/in loose carry bags and bearing details like name of manufacturer and branches or others as required by FSSAI or other relevant Acts?

Observations:

We find that in the case of brand names, which are not covered under the definition of ‘registered brand name’, even a brand name on which an actionable claim or enforceable right in a court of law is available, shall be considered as ‘brand name’ for the purpose of taxability of product in question, in terms of Notification No. 01/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28th June 2017, as amended.

In view of the above discussion, we conclude that mentioning the name and registered address of the supplier as the manufacturer, as per the statutory requirement, is also to be considered as “bearing a brand name” and, hence, the second condition is satisfied.

In view of the above, we hold that the benefit of the exemption provided vide entry at Sr. No. 27 of the Notification No.02/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28th June 2017, as amended, can be extended to the applicant’s product subject to the fulfillment of two conditions viz. (i) ‘Paneer’ is not put up in the unit container, means a package, whether large or small (for example, tin, can, box, jar, bottle, bag, or carton, drum, barrel, or canister) designed to hold a predetermined quantity or number, which is indicated on such packages and (ii) said unit container is not bearing a registered brand name or a brand name on which an actionable claim or enforceable right in a court of law is available.

Ruling:

Question-1: Whether the benefit of exemption of GST at 0% is applicable for the invoices raised to the end-use users in case of selling of paneer in loose form without sealing of packet / in loose carry bags and bearing details like name of manufacturer and branches or others as required by FSSAI or other relevant Acts?

Answer: The benefit of the exemption provided vide entry at Sr. No. 27 of the Notification No.02/2017-Central Tax (Rate) dated 28th June 2017, as amended, can be extended to the applicant’s product subject to the fulfillment of two conditions viz. (i) ‘Paneer’ is not put up in the unit container, means a package, whether large or small (for example, tin, can, box, jar, bottle, bag, or carton, drum, barrel, or canister) designed to hold a pre-determined quantity or number, which is indicated on such packages and (ii) Unit container is not bearing a registered brand name or a brand name on which an actionable claim or enforceable right in a court of law is available.

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